Car coupler



May 27, 1924.

CAR COUPLER 6 Sheets-$heet 1 Filed June 30 1919 IFJFH}? 32 I 4 5 I! r u 83 2 13. g l I q iy amuuvtoz M WW 3% WNW- CAR COUPLER Filed June 30, 1919 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 anwwlfoz ay I 1,495,463 c. H. TOMLINSON CAR COUPLER 6 Shets-Sheet 5 Filed June 30, 1919 May 27, 1924. 1,495,463

0. H. TOMLINSON CAR COUPLER Filed June 30. 1919 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 May 27, 1-924. 3

- CQH. TOMUNSON v 7 CAR COUPLER Filed June 30, 1919'. e sheets-sheet 5 Shoe "to;

1924. May 27 v v c. H. TOMLINSON CAR COUPLER Filed June 30. 1919 mkfl 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 dttozuua 5 Fig. 13 is a die.- the limiting an ar srmn, OHIO, assaenon are me semen, one, a come:

more or onto.

o courann' To all whom it may concern:

- Be it known that I, Qnamns H. Tonnm- SON, a citizen of the United States, ms

at nsfield, in the county of Richland an t Stateof Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car Couplers,

of which the following is a specification.

This invention has vision of a device of the class named w 1011 no shall be of improved construction and op-' eration. 4.

The invention is exemplified in the combination and arrangement of the parts shown in the accompanying drawings and 6 described in the following specification, and

it is more lparticularly pointed out in the appended c aims.

In the drawin Fig. 1 is a horizontal sectional view of a '20 car coupler forming a part of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the coupler shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an end view of the coupler lookas, ingfrom the right in Fig. 2;

ig. 4 is a top plan view of a coupler and its operating mechanism shown in engagement with a counterpart coupler;

Fig. 5 is an elevation of a coupler in 80 place on a car;

Fig. 6 is an elevation of the coupler-operating mechanism;

Fi 7 is a view similar to Fi 6 but showingt e operating mechanism in a dlfierent 95 position;

Figs. 8 and 9 are elevations taken at right angles to one another showing the oscillatory arm ior operatin the coupler;

Figs. 10 and 11 are e evations atri ht anglee to one another showing the hen lever or operating the coupler;

Fig. 12 is a sections view of a spring and casing which is inserted in the coupler op erating chain; v

atic view showing sition of .two couplers as commo y app 'ed in steam railway practice;

Fig. 14 is a diagrammatic view showw ing a coupler made in accordance with the present invention connected with a coupler of well-known ty used in steam railway ra'ctice and the gure illustrates the anguar movement between the two couplers; and

t Fig. 15 is an elevation of portions of two or its object the ro- Application flied June so, ma Serial no. soasse.

cars coupled together as the cars pass over the top of an e evation.

'A cou ling device to meet the requirements 0 modern electric railway practice notonly must be so designed that it will properly operate when two cars of an electric railway are connected together with counterpart couplers, but it must also be able to properly 0 erate when connected with a coupler of t e usual form used on steam railways, for the reason that it is frequently desirable to couple a car from a steam railway to a car of an electric railway. In steam railway practice there are are no short curves and no sudden changes in grade and it is customary to connect the couplers rigidly with the ends of the cars steam roads. The pivotal joint for the connecting knuckles of the couplers is not shown, but the drawings illustrate the angular movement between the couplers since the knuckles are held rigidly with the head of the coupler when two cars are connected together so that the angular movement is the same as if the entire coupler heads were made in one piece. It will be seen that'the coupler at the right of the figure is swun to the limit of its angular movement, whic illustrates the-extreme angular movement in steain railway practice, the amount of movement being about 16 on either side of the center line. In electric railway ractice muchshorter curves are encountere and it is impractical to depend upon pivotal movement between the coupler heads to accom modate such curves. It is therefore common to provide electric railway cars with elongated drawbars such as shown at 21 in Fi 5. These drawbars are usually a prommately five feet long and are pivote to the car at a point spaced from the end thereof, as shown in Figs. 5 and 15. When two sets of drawbars are connected together by the permit or much shorter turns than that cone mon in steam railwa practice. Where pivoted drawbars are use it is necessary, however, that the heads when coupled together shall form a rigid connection so far as lateral movement is concerned, for the reason that if the coupler heads were pivotally connected together, the bars would buckle at the ivotal connection between the coupler earls whenever a pushing force was exerted between the two cars. It is therefore ap parent that an electric couplermust he so designed that it will permit of pivotal movement when connected with a steam railway car, but will be locked rigidly againstsuch pivotal movement when connected with a counterpart coupler of its own type.

lln electric railway coupling practice it is also necessary to provide for a much greater vertical movement of the two coupler heads relative to one another than is required in steam railway practice, for the reason that much sharper breaks in the grade of the track are permitted in electric railway practice than in steam practice. Fig. shows a pair of couplers constructed according to the present invention (ill till

and connected with two cars passing over the high point in an elevation of the track. If two couplers were permitted unlimited vertical movement relative to one another they would frequently be disconnected vertically under conditions like that illustrated in Fig. 15. The various leatures o1? applicants invention for meeting the re quirements referred to and others w ll appear in connection with the description of the invention.

It will be seen from Fig. l of the drawings that the drawbar 21 comprises a hollow casting provided at one side with a guard arm 22 and at the other side with an abutment shoulder 23. A coupling knuckle 2% is pivoted at 25 at the side of the center line of the coupler head adjacent the shoulder 23. The knuckle 24l is provided with a tailpiece 26 for contacting with the sliding lock 27 on which the knuckle is held in coupling position. A spring 28 normally swings the knuckle into open or uncoupled position so that when two cars are brought together the front ends of the knuckle will pass one another and strike the tailpieces of the knuckles oil the cooperating coupler and be swung into coupling position shown in Fig. i. When in this position the sliding lock 27 is moved forwardly, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, hy

a spring 29 coiled about a rod 30 connected with the rear of the sliding lock. The lock 27 is provided at its forward end with a nosepiece 31 for engaging a notch 32 on the knuckle of the cooperating coupler, as illustrated in Fig. l. When two coupler heads are thus connected together the knuckles are incense douhly locked having their tailpieees held Toy the lock of the same coupler head and having the notches 232 engaggd hy the nose piece 3i out" the lock or t e coo crating coupler head. At the same time t e front end of the guard arm 22 or each coupler head engages the shoulder 23 of the co operating coupler head so that the coupler heads are held against pivotal movement relative to one another. The contacting surfaces of the guard arms and shoulders 22 and 23 are preterahly provided with wear plates 33.

lit willhe noted from Figs. 3 and 315 that the openings 32 are longer vertically than the height or the nosepiece 31 of the sliding catch 2?, hut that the to and hott/om oi the openings 32 are close to limit vertical movement of the catch in the slot. This will prevent the coupling heads from losing disconnected hy vertical movement relative to one another and yet will allow the coupling of two cars although their con ler heads are slightly out of horizontal ahne ment due to inequality or: load on the cars or other causes. Where the relative vertical movement of two coupler heads is limited it is apparent that some provision must he made for vertical movement of the cars relative to one another to a greater extent thanthat permitted of the relative move ment of the coupler heads and this is done in the present invention loy providing spring drawhar carriers shown at 3% which nor mally hold the drawhars and coupling heads in an intermediate position, hut permit resilient vertical movement of the drawhars on both sides of normal position. The spring drawhar carriers .are' mounted to slide on arcuate su ports 35 suspended from the car bodies and curved about the pivots 36 on which the ends of the drawhars are supported. In Fig. the cars are shown displaced vertically a distance greater than that permitted hy the movement of the sliding catches 27 in their notches 32. When the coupling heads have moved vertically relative to one another the maximum amount permitted hy the notches 32 further relative vertical movement of the cars is accommodated by the spring action of the drawhar carriers 34. lit will thus he seen that the spring catches hold the coupler heads from disconnection vertically and that the abutment memhers 22 and 23 prevent huckling of the drawhars under compression, so that together the two features adapt the coupler heads to the peculiar conditions of electric railway practice. When, however, a coupler head made according to the present invention is caused to engage a coupler head oil the form commonly used in steam railway practice, the spring catch 331 will he moved to a partially withdrawn position illustrated in hroken lines in Fig. l

lllt) lllO the contact of the abutinents 33 of the co- 0 erating couplers will swing the couplers a out their ivotal supports until alignment is secured. If the abutments were not resent the nose-pieces 31 of the locking are 27 would not register with the openmgs 32 of the cooperating couplers if the couplers happened to be swung slightly to one slde or t angular displacement is corrected by the abutment members 33, which Wlll restore the an ular position of the couplers and bring t em into alignment so that the nosepieces 31 will enter the openings 32 and thus bring these parts into cooperatlon so as to preventuncoupling by relative vertical d splacement.

I claim I 1 1. In a car cou ler, thecombination of a drawbar universa ly pivoted at one end, supporting means for the other end ofi said drawbar permitting vertlcal and lateral movement thereof, a hollow coupler head carried b said drawbar and having a pivoted knuc :le provided with an elongated slot, a spring-held locking bar adapted to engage said knuckle to hold 1t 1n locked position, said locking bar being adapted to engage also the recess of the knuckle of an opposing coupler to limit vertical displacement when in coupled relatlon with said opposing coupler, said firstmentioned coupler having a guard arm on one side and a shelf on the other side of the center line thereof arranged to engage with a corresponding guard arm and shelf of said opposing coupler when in coupled relation therewith said guard arms and shelves operating automatically on impact of the cars to bring the locking bars of each coupler into alinement with the recess of the knuckle of the cooperating coupler and to retain the drawbars of said couplers in longitudinal alinement, and unlocking means operable from either side of the car intersectin the center of motion of said drawbar where y the movement of the locking bar is.

the same at any position of the drawbar.

2. In combination, a car coupler rovided with an extended arm on one side 0 the center line thereof arranged to guide said cou pler into engagement with a cooperating coupler,an abutment on the opposite side of said coupler head for engaglng the guard arm on said cooperating coupler, a pivoted knuckle with an elongated recess in the face thereof, a sliding spring-held locking bar adapted to engage the elongated recess of a cooperating knuckle, said locking bar being arranged also tolimit vertical displacement of said coupler relative to said cooperating coupler while said guard arm and abutment are arranged to aline said couplers automatically on impact of the cars for e other of the center line. Any such neeaeee entrance of said locking bar into the recess in said knuckle and to maintain the drawbars of said couplers in longitudinal aline-- ment when in coupled relation, and uncoupling means accessible from either side of the car and operable irrespective of the lateral or vertical movement of the draw bar.

3. In combination, a car cou ler having means thereon for locking sai coupler in en agement with a cooperating coupler, said 100 ing means being formed to cooperate with t e locking means of the cooperatin coupler to prevent disengagement of said couplers by vertical displacement relative to one another, and abutment members on opposite sides of the center line of said coupler arranged to be held in abutting relation with correspondin members of said cooperating coupler by t e locking means of said couplers to hold said couplers in longitudinal alinement with one another, the abutting members of the two couplers cooperating on impact of said cou lers to position said looking means for 100 ing engagement.

4. Mechanism for coupling a pair of cars together comprising drawbars pivotally connected with said cars and having couplin heads carried thereby at the ends thereo opposite said pivotal connections and cooperating with one another to hold said cars in coupled relation, draft knuckles pivoted on said coupler heads for engagement with one another, means for holding said draft knuckles in coupling engagement, means for preventing disengagement of said coupler heads by vertical displacement relative to one another while permitting a limited amount of vertical displacement of said coupler heads, and abutment members on each of said coupler heads and s aced laterally from the center lines thereo for engagingthe corresponding abutment members of the cooperating coupler head to prevent lateral buckling of said drawbars when said drawbars are subjected to a pushing stress and to bring said drawbars into alinement. on impact of said coupler heads to permit proper engagement of the cooperating parts carried thereby.

5. Mechanism for coupling a pair of cars together comprising a drawbar pivotally connected to each of said cars and having a coupler head thereon at the end thereof opposite said pivotal connection, a couplin knuckle pivotally mounted on each of sai heads, a lock on each of said heads for holding the knuckle thereon in engagement with the knuckle of the cooperating head, said lock having means thereon for engaging the knuckle of the cooperating head to lock said knuckle against pivotal movement and to limit vertical movement of said heads relative to one another, yieldin drawbar carriers for permitting vertica movement of spouses coupler head, or'else may he looked in this thereto by pins .46 and till Gil

" couplers in engagement with one another.

position hy mechanism to he described so that pivotal movement with the coupler of the steam railway car is not interfered with hy the lock which holds a pair of counterpart electric railway couplers rigidly relative to one another. Thispivotal movement of two unlike. couplers is illustrated in Fig. it and it should he noted that the guard arm 22 is spaced outwardly a sucient distance to accoodate a projection 37 usually found on couplers of the steam railway type. It is also noted that the shoulder 23 is spaced hackwardly from the end or" the couler a suficient distance to ermit pivota movement of the two coupers relative to one another without interfering with the' guard arm of the steam railway car cou ler.

The inner end of the operating re '30 for the slide lock 37 is provided with an operating chain 38 which extends inwardly to a position directly heneath the pivotal support 36 for the drawloar 21 where it is connected with a downwardly extending arm 39 which is secured by a set screw to to a sleeve 41 journaled in hearing lugs l2 extending downwardly from a late 43 which carries the pivot 36 for the irawhar.

The sleeve ll is rovided with a central square opening t rough which passes a squared shaft 44. The squared shaft it, as shown in Figs. 6, 7, 10 and 11 is provided at each end with a sleeve 45 rigidly secured rovided with an operatin handle 47. 'T e sleeves 45 are journale in hearing lugs 48 which are-so cured to and project downwardly from the car floor, as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. Each hearing lug 4:8. isv provided with a catch member 49 having a beveled surface 50 against which the operating lever d? hears when the lever is swung inwardly or away from the car to retract the sliding lock 2?. lit will he a arentthat the squared shaft it may he s id in the direction'of its axis transversely of the car and thus may he caused to engage the catch 49 and he held in a retracted. osition as illustrated in hrolren lines in Fig. 11. The chain 38 is of such length that when the o crating lever 47 engages the catch 49,: the s iding och 27 will he held in partially withdrawn position shown in-hrohen lines in Fig. l. The sliding loch may he set in this position when the coupler is connected with a coupler of a steam railway car so that the nose 31 of the lock will he prevented from ruhhing upon the knuckle of the steam railway car coupler and yet the knuckle of the electric railway car coupler will have its tailpiece 26 held hy the sliding lock to hold the two In order to release the knuckle 2d the eperatin lever at? is further rotated in a clockperformed hy first swinging the operating event? of one of the cars to the osition shown in hroken lines in Fig. 11 an sliding the squared shaft endwise to hring the lever 47 into engagement with the catch 49. This will hold the slidin lock 27 in partially retracted position. T e operator then goes to the connected car and swings the operating lever 47 entirely hack to completely release the hluckle of the coupler of that car. This will permit uncoupling of the cars for the reason. that the notch 32 of the second car has alread 'heen releasedtrom the nose 31 of the sliding lock 27 first operated. When it is again desired to couple the car in which the lever 47 was first o erated with another car, the operator may appen to he on the slde of the car opposite that on which the lever 47 is engaged by the catch 49. lit is desirable therefore to he able to release the lever 47 from its catch from either side of the car regardless of which side of the car the operator was on when the lever was set in its partially retracted position. This may he accomplished with the present invention for the reason that the squared rod 441 is provided with. an operating lever 47 at each end and the rod may he, rotated from one end as well as the other and may also he slid lontudinally of its axis from either side of t e car to move either lever into and out of engagement with its corresponding catch.

Since the chain 38 is connected to the arm 39 heneath-the pivotal center of the drawhar 21 the movement of the drawhar ahout its pivot will not'cause any force to he exerted u on the chain 38 tending to retract the sli ing lock 27 or to release the loch if it should he held in partially retracted position. As shown in Fig. 5, however, the

'drawhar 21 is provided with a spring 51 parent that changing of the length oft e 4 drawhar under a heavy pull, for instance, would tend to stretch the chain 38, and to accoodate this stretching movement oi? the chain a spring talreup 52 shown in detail in Fig. 12 is inserted hetwehn the linlrs or the chain. This will permit the chain to yield to accommodate itself tovariation. in the length of the drawhar.

lit the two couplers are not in exact align ment when the cars are brought together,

BED

. into operative messes said drawbars relative to said cars, and abutment members on each of said heads for engaging the corresponding members on the coo crating head to bring the extremities of sai looks into alinement with openings in said knuckles u on im act of said cou lers and to hold said draw are in longitu inal alinement with one another.

6. A car coupler comprising an elongated drawbar pivotally connected with a car, a coupler headcarmed by said drawbar havin a guard arm at one side thereof provide with an abutment shoulder and an abutment member at the opposite side thereof provided with an abutment shoulder for en- 1gaging a guard arm of a cooperating coupler ead, a coupling knuckle pivotally mounted on said head, means on sald head for coacting with a cooperating head to limit vertical displacement of said heads relative to one another, said means being automaticall positioned for operative engagement wit said cooperatin head by said abutment shoulders upon lmpact of said couplers and means for supporting said draw at from said car to permit ylelding vertical move ment of said drawbar relative to said car.

- 7. Mechanism for coupling a pair of cars together comprising a drawbar ivotally mounted on one of said cars and havin a coupler head thereon, coupling mechanism for holding said head in cou led relation with a cooperating coupler hea said mechanism comprising means for preventing said heads from being disconnected from one another by relative vertical movement while permitting a limited vertical dis lacement of said heads relative to one am er, abutment members on said head for engaging said cooperating head to bring said means position and to hold said drawbar in longitudinal alinement with the drawbar of said cooperatin head, and means for suspending said rawbar from its car to permit vertical movement of said drawbar relative to said car.

8. Mechanism for coupling one car to another comprisin a coupler head havin couplin mechanism carried thereby, a 10c for sai coupling mechanism havin a looking, an unlocking, and an intermediate position, and means operable from either side of said car for securing said lock in intermediate position, said means bein operable also from either side of said car or releasing said look from said intermediate osition independently of whether said ock was placed in said position from the same or the opposite side of said car.

9. Mechanism for coupling one car with another comprising an elongated drawbar pivotall connected with said car and having a coup er head provided w1th coupling mechanism, a lock for said coupling mechanism movable into position to lock the coupling mechanism of said couplin head and also the coupling mechanism 0 a cooperating coupling head, operating means for said lock arranged when in an intermediate position to withdraw said look from engagement with the coupling mechanism of said cooperating head while retainin the cou ling mechanism of said first mentioned hea in coupling position, said operating means comprising a catch 0 erab e from either side of said car for holding said lock in said intermediate osition, and means for releasing said catch rom either side of said car independently of whether said catch was set from the same or the opposite side of said car.

10. Mechanism for coupling one car with another comprising a coupler headhavin coupling mec anism thereon, a look for sai coupling mechanism movable into a locking, an unlocking and an intermediate position, operating means for said lock com rising a shaft extending transversely of sai car and rotatable about its axis for operatin said lock and also movable in the direction of said axis for locking said. shaft in a given position of rotation to hold said lock in intermediate position, and means connected with said shaft on each side of said car for movinglsaid shaft both 'angularly and longitudina y 11. In combination, a pair of comple mentary couplers each connected to a car by a pivotally mounted drawbar, abutments on said couplers for preventing buckling of said drawbars under thrust, and means for retaining said abutments in cooperative relation with one another, said retainin means being arranged to permit a limite amount of movement of said couplers relative to one another in a direction transverse to said drawbars and to revent disengagement of said couplers us to said relative movement In testimony whereof I have signed my name tothis s ecification' on this 26 day of June A. D. 1 19.

CHARLES H. TosoN. 

